


One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

by Tammysalad



Series: The TLC Chronicles [1]
Category: Harry Potter - Fandom
Genre: F/F, F/M, Gen, Harry Potter - Freeform, Hogwarts, Hogwarts Eighth Year, Hogwarts First Year, Hogwarts Seventh Year, Hogwarts Sixth Year, I refuse to use characters that already exist, M/M, Multi, Other, all original characters - Freeform, you get the point
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-28
Updated: 2017-12-30
Packaged: 2019-02-23 00:10:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 1,946
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13178181
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tammysalad/pseuds/Tammysalad
Summary: Lorelai, Talya, and Cassi have been best friends since any of them can remember. Finally the year comes when they get carted away to Hogwarts. It's been ten years since the Battle of Hogwarts, which means new teachers, new students, and same old Headmaster McGonagall. The girls have been planning everything for years now, what house they'll all be in, the friends they'll make, how well they'll do on their tests, and even the order they'll sleep in. But when they get sorted into different houses, their plans are ruined. Everything has changed, everything is falling apart. And suddenly, so is their friendship.





	1. The Beginning of the End: Lorelai

Lorelai bounced up and down on her toes. The day was finally here! She had turned eleven about three months ago, and had woken up that with nothing but Hogwarts on her mind. It was plenty exciting, a few days ago she’d gone with her family to buy a new robe, a wand, books, and even a brand new owl! Out of the three of them, her, Talya, and Cassi, she was the only one with a pet. The result of a half-hour’s worth of staring at birds now cooed in a cage balanced on her suitcase. After a long conference with her friends, Lorelai had chosen the name Kaede for the tawny owl.  
She had had her mother style her unruly red hair into a long plait that morning, brushing off compliments from her mother about how the style made her green eyes stand out. It was only a disguised way to stop her from packing her collection of multi-colored contact lenses. That day she’d chosen purple, for no reason other than to spite her.  
Next to her, ten-year-old Cassi chewed on her nails. Cassi’s birthday was tomorrow, a fun coincidence to say the least. Her straight black hair was held back by a green band, and her clothes looked ruffled as though she’d pulled them on in a hurry. Lorelai had offered her some green lenses to match it, but she had refused, preferring, quite boringly, to keep her eyes their usual brown.  
Their suitcases were behind them, and they stood on Platform Nine and Three-Quarters waiting for Talya to show up. Cassi kept glancing at the clock, which Lorelai though was very nervous of her. Talya was always late, so what was she so worried about?  
“Cass, are you okay?” She asked. Cassi nodded.  
“I’m just a bit... I don’t know, excited? I think that’s what it is, anyway. Where _is_ Talya?”  
She felt a tap on her shoulder, and looked up into a pair of bright blue eyes.  
“Ooh, I love your eyes today, Lori!” Talya grinned. “Notice anything diffrent about me?”  
The other two looke at her for a few seconds before they saw it. Her wavy blonde hair had been cropped up to her shoulders and dyed with blue and purple streaks. Compliments were passed around, and then the train rolled in and the girls went to climb aboard.  
It took them a few minutes to find an empty carriage, and when they did Cassi immediately jumped up to go change into her robes. It took her only a bit, but by the time she had returned both Talya and Lorelai were already dressed.  
“We’ve know each other for years, Cass,” Lorelai laughed. “We can change in front of each other.”  
Cassi mumbled something under her breath and sat down.  
“I’ve got snacks! Does anyone want any?” Talya dug around in her bag, digging out a tin of sweets.  
“Nah, it’s fine, my mum gave me some money to spend on food from the cart,” Lorelai replied. She turned to the other girl, who just quietly shook her head and pulled a sandwich out of her satchel.  
And so the journey went by uneventfully. Lorelai had heard that most people met friends on their first train ride to Hogwarts, but the girls already had each other. Thanks to Talya’s glaring whenever someone passed by, no one tried to invade their carriage. Finally the train pulled into the station, and everyone piled out in a muddle of warm bodies and robes. A large floating sign pointed the first years to a cluster of small boats that bobbed abut in the murky water of the lake. Another floating sign directed them to sit down, four people per boat. The three girls were the last to board, which resulted in them having a boat all to themselves, which Lorelai though was pretty nice. The boats shot off by themselves as soon as this occupants were seated.  
When the castle came into view, no one was very impressed. It was magestic, of course, but everyone had seen pictures of it already. No one was very impressed by the ghosts, either, though Lorelai wondered why so many of them were teenagers who pointed and smiled and mingled amongst themselves, their bodies shimmering an icy blue. A tall woman entered the room, a black witch’s hat balanced precariously upon her graying hair.  
“Welcome, first years! My name is Headmaster McGonogall. I’m very glad you all are here today. Please, do follow me, so that we can begin our sorting ceremony!”  
She led them down hallway after hallway, until finally they walked into a huge room filled with people. Candles floated in the air above tables lined with black-robed students. A chair with an old hat stood front-and-center on the stage. The first years were instructed to seat themselves at an empty table, and McGonogall began to read names out. Name after name was called, until finally...  
“Ramel, Lorelai.”  
Lorelai made her way onto the stage, and almost as soon as the hat was on her head, it made it’s choice.  
“RAVENCLAW!”  
Cheers from a table far in the back. She smiled at Talya and Cassi as she passed them, and sat down next to a brow-haired boy.  
“Rilit, Doven.” Was a Gryffindor, and “Sullivan, Clarke.” Was a Slytherin, and then they called up Cassi.  
“Tannings, Cassandra.”  
Lorelai sat there, her heart in her mouth, as she watched her friend sit on the stool. McGonagall slowly lowered the hat onto her head. She scrunched her face up, looking like she was about to cry, and then...  
“HUFFLEPUFF!”  
“No. No no no no no.” Cassi’s hands flew to her mouth, and she ran off the podium. A few more names were called.  
“Zalinberg, Talya.”  
“GRYFFINDOR!”  
Lorelai hadn’t even noticed she was crying. Everything was all wrong. Everything was ruined. Talya stumbled off of the stage as though in a trance.  
The enchanted dove necklace they all wore seemed to gleam a little bit dimmer.


	2. Gelatin Moulds: Talya

Talya had barely touched her food. She still couldn’t belive what had happened, still expected to look next to her and see Lorelai. Everything was supposed to go perfectly.

 

The girl next to her was cute, at least. But did it matter? She was too depressed to bother with cute girls, at least for the moment. The Ravenclaw table Lorelai was sitting at wasn’t actually that far away from her, perhaps they could still figure something out? Of course, the Hufflepuffs sat all the way on the other side of the dining hall. Poor Cassi was more isolated than either of them.

 

The cute girl suddenly turned and smiled at her.

 

“I like your hair!” 

 

Talya grinned back, more certain than ever that she probably looked really stupid. 

 

“Um, thanks!” That was all she could force out without choking on her own tongue. Seemingly noticing her discomfort, the girl turned back to her friends. From what Talya could see, Lorelai hadn’t eaten much yet either. She spent the rest of the meal poking at her now-cold food and stealing peeks at the newly-appointed Ravenclaw-who-was-formerly-going-to-be-in-the-same-house-as-her sitting a few feet away. Once again, she was reminded of how lonely Cassi probably was.

 

Dinner ended, and the first years were instructed to follow their prefects to the dorms. Everyone stood all at once, and Talya took advantage of the confusion to quickly whisper to Lorelai:

 

“Meet me in the library during the first free period we have. Let Cass know too.”

 

Lorelai gave her a confirming nod, and then melted back into the crowd. The first year Gryffindors surged foreward, following after a snotty-looking girl with a short brown bob who introduced herself as ‘Maya’ as soon as they had left the dining hall. They walked through hallway after hallway until finally stopping in front of a large painting.

 

The painting was that of a fairly plump woman wearing a large poofy purple dress and a matching bonnet. Murmurs of confusion rippled through the small crowd. Maya rolled her eyes.

 

“The Fat Lady’s portrait got damaged a few years ago, and they ended up having to re-paint it. She insisted in a change of wardrobe, and this was the result.” She explained. The plump woman smiled widely at them.

 

“Password, please!”

 

“Gelatin Moulds.” 

 

The picture frame swung sideways to reveal a small doorway. One by one, the Gryffindors filed through it and into the common room.

 

“I like your new dress.” Talya told the woman as she ducked inside. 

 

The portrait gave her a huge smile and happily chirped; “Toodles!” As she swung closed. 

 

The Gryffindor common room was fairly cozy, at least as far common rooms went. A magically lit fireplace flickered, softly illuminating the vast number of couches and poofy chairs surrounding it. Maya directed the girls one way and the boys another, watching the, carefully as they walked into their dorms to claim beds. Talya plopped her suitcase on a random one and sighed. Even now, nothing was going right.


	3. Of Arrah And Blue: Cassi

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for any typos, I know the first two chapters have a few. I’ll probably end up going back and fixing them later.

Cassi had decided a few hours ago that she was done feeling bad for herself. She was lying on an overstuffed armchair in the Hufflepuff common room, sulking, when she realized that the only way to get the others to leave her alone was to perk up.

The common room was very cozy. Her dorm was very cozy. The entirety of Hufflepuff House was very cozy, an inescapable feeling, as though the warm lighting and fluffy couches where closing in on her. Most of the furniture was either wooden or very poofy. A stone fireplace crackled in the corner, and plants grew everywhere. Litterally. Pots hung from the ceiling, full of azaleas and orchids. Vines grew along the walls, held up by thin metal hooks. The windows had almost overflowing flower-boxes, the girls dorm had a large bonsai in the corner, and someone had lain tiny blue flowers, no bigger then her thumb, on almost every flat surface in the vicinity. 

Cassi was fiddling with one. She had just plucked off one of the flowers iridescent blue petals when she heard a tiny gasp coming from her right. She looked up and into the eyes of a tiny, bespectacled girl whose long black hair was pulled into two braids and tied off with silver ribbons.

“Don’t hurt the flower, Cassandra!”

“What?”

“Don’t hurt the flower! You pulled off a petal!”

Cassi sighed and placed it on the table beside her.

“I’m... sorry?”

“Good.”

“How do you know my name?”

The girl giggled and gestured at a name tag all the first years had been made to stick on their fronts as they’d filed into the room earlier that night. It read CASSANDRA TANNINGS in large, messy letters.

“Everyone calls me Cassi.”

The girl smiled at her and pushed her glasses back up with the tip of her fingers.

“It’s nice to meet you, Cassi. My name’s Arrah!”

Cassi wondered if it got tiring to always be so polite. Arrah sat straight up in her chair, reaching up only to fix her glasses. A wide smile seemed permanently etched into her face. Didn’t her cheek muscles ever get tired?

Apparently not. The prefect, Jonah, walked up, and Arrah's smile stretched still wider. He nodded at them, Cassi returning it. 

A few hours later, the first years lay quietly in their beds. It was around midnight, and not a sound could be heard from the school. From what Cassi could tell, she was the only one awake, in Hufflepuff house at least. 

Things weren't going perfectly, but at least they we're all under the same roof, in the same large castle. Things could always be worse.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm a chronic procrastinator, so don't expect updates very often.


End file.
